Ulster Captain Henderson Addresses Team’s Four-Game Losing Streak

Ulster’s opening two Investec Champions Cup matches have seen them concede a total of 101 points. Unlike a year ago, the team did not manage to recover from a difficult start to their European campaign. Last season, their European journey commenced with a significant 37-14 defeat to Bath. Although they did not advance to the knockout stages, the squad provided fans with a memorable evening by securing an impressive bonus-point victory over Racing 92 in Belfast after that initial loss at the Rec. This season, however, a similar revitalizing comeback has not materialized. Following a heavy defeat by Toulouse in the previous week’s season opener, Saturday’s 40-19 loss to Bordeaux places Ulster at the bottom of Pool One, with a points difference of -61. While Ulster was overwhelmed from the outset against Toulouse, on Saturday, they posed a threat for a considerable period, aiming to defeat the other leading Top 14 team that stands in their path to the next stage. Cormac Izuchukwu, Nick Timoney, and Werner Kok scored tries, giving Richie Murphy’s team a 19-14 advantage at halftime. Nevertheless, Ulster’s momentum faltered in the second half, with Bordeaux scoring 26 consecutive points, exacerbating the hosts’ mid-season struggles. With previous losses to Cardiff, Leinster, and Toulouse, Ulster has now endured a four-game losing streak and has allowed 101 points in their initial two European fixtures this season. The defeats against Toulouse and Bordeaux also mean Ulster has secured only three victories in their last 14 European competition matches. This period represents the most difficult challenge for the squad under Murphy, who took over from Dan McFarland earlier this year. Captain Iain Henderson views the team’s response to this disheartening series of outcomes as a crucial test. Henderson, who returned to the starting line-up after being on the bench for the Toulouse match, stated: “I’m going to judge us on how we react to that [disappointing run] internally and externally.” He further commented on their recent schedule, saying, “The last three weeks we’ve played Leinster, Toulouse and Bordeaux, three of the top teams in Europe, and we knew this was always going to be start of a really tough period for us.” Henderson emphasized the team’s immediate focus: “We’re going to measure ourselves on how we turn up on Monday morning and attempt to approach next week [against Munster].” He concluded by adding: “Are we there yet? We’re nowhere near where we want to be, but going forward we have a vision and a plan in place of what we want to do.” Henderson’s return to Ulster’s starting line-up, having been a substitute in the previous week’s loss to Toulouse, preceded his observation that this series of matches was always anticipated to be a rigorous evaluation of Ulster’s development. The necessity of competing against Leinster and the top two French rugby teams while missing several key players—notably Jacob Stockdale, Tom Stewart, John Cooney, and James Hume—has intensified the difficulty. Conversely, this situation has allowed Murphy to introduce younger squad members to some of the most demanding challenges in club rugby. Last week, James McCormick and Ben Carson were among those who debuted in European competition. On Saturday, Ireland Sevens player Zac Ward made his senior XVs debut, and Rory Telfer and James Humphreys entered the game late for their initial Champions Cup experience. While facing such demanding conditions can be challenging for inexperienced players, Henderson maintains that it will contribute positively to the squad’s long-term growth. Henderson explained, “There’s always disappointment after losing big games, especially the manner we’ve lost our last two, but that’s part of the learning process, part of the pain you have to go through to get better.” He continued, “Ensuring a lot of our players are getting exposure to the top level will definitely stand to them. Especially to those couple of guys getting their first cap tonight; I thought Zac did really well, Telf probably didn’t get enough to show what he can actually do.” Henderson concluded by stating, “But those guys, and last week as well, getting exposure at that level, they can only learn from that and ideally get better.” Ulster’s next opportunity to revive their European aspirations will be a month from now, on 11 January, when they travel to face Leicester. Before that, they have two festive inter-provincial matches, starting with hosting Munster on Friday evening. Despite the team’s current struggles, Henderson dismisses the idea that the recent period will leave a permanent psychological mark on the squad. “I’ve no doubt in my mind that the guys will come in on Monday, there will be no-one sulking, there will be no-one trying to throw anyone else under the bus,” Henderson affirmed. He added, “As I said, it’s a process together to ensure we can continue to work on what we’ve been working on for the last number of weeks.”